Bath Time

Steven loves taking a bath. He always liked being in the water but he can really play in it now. He loves his rubber duckie that Aunt Cheryl got him for Christmas, and giggles when I sing him the rubber duckie song (I learned it from Sesame Street when I used to watch it). A couple of months ago, Charlton and I decided to move his baby tub into the big tub to bathe him, because once he discovered how fun splashing was, water was getting all over the bathroom. He can sit up on his own in the tub very well now; although, he doesn't understand that the water makes his tub a little more slippery because sometimes he tries to crawl over the side to check out the "big tub." These are my favorite bath time photos.

You might think that you know us...

but I bet most of you assumed that when you saw Harry Potter under "books we are currently reading," that I was reading them. You, in fact, would only be half correct. After years of raving about the Harry Potter books, I finally convinced Charlton to read them. He started with Book 1 (of course) and just finished Book 5 last Tuesday. His assessment is that #1 and 2 are good but once you get to the last 100 pages of #3, you won't be able to put it down. He is as obsessed as I am! I've caught him taking books with him all around the house and standing up reading because he can't put them down. "I'm going to take a break before I start the next one" are famous last words. In preparation for the 7th and final Harry Potter book coming out July 21, I decided to re-read the series with him. We've been reading them (admittedly) too much, so we decided that we needed to give Harry Potter up for Lent- that is why they have disappeared (though temporarily) from our "currently reading" section. Yet, somehow I feel validated that an Ivy League school graduate reads and loves HP as much as I do. I even see a little resemblance to HP when I look at Steven...ok, ok, that might be pushing it, but he definitely has the hair!

If you haven't read them....you are missing out!

He really does chew on everything...

even his cousin! I had to post these pictures I took today of Steven and Saige. Cheryl and I were taking pictures of them sitting up, and Steven decided that he wanted to give Saige a hug (and chew on her shoulder or shirt- I'm not sure which)...poor, sweet Saige. Cheryl and I were busy laughing and taking pictures, and Saige kept looking at us like WHY DON"T YOU HELP ME! It's a good thing that Steven doesn't have any teeth yet...sorry, Saige!

Second Haircut

Steven's hair was getting a little shaggy, so he got his second haircut this Saturday. This is also in preparation for his 6 months portraits that he'll be taking in a few weeks. He's such a clean-cut little boy in his jeans and cute sweater (thanks Sara O.)!

Happy Belated Valentine's Day To Everyone!

Steven says he loves you. You realize, though, that this comes from a little, hairy man that sucks on his toes. (His momma used to do the same thing when she was a baby so she thinks it's cute!)

Sitting Up

Steven can sit up all by himself now. He's been working on this for a while but, until recently, has needed the Boppy or Bumbo seat to support him. A week or two ago I started sitting him up without either one to see how long he could last before falling over. He started sitting longer each time, and then last Thursday, he never fell over. The only problem is that now he's not satisfied with just sitting there- he wants to crawl. So, he has started lunging for his out-of-reach toys and is upset when he can't move any further. I keep telling him (and myself)...one thing at a time. I took these pictures of him today in this adorable Winnie the Pooh outfit (Thanks, Sarah and Ryan).

Steven's Exersaucer

Here are some action shots of Steven in his exersaucer. He loves it!
Thanks to Michelle, who works with Charlton, for giving it to us! We had tried putting him in it a couple of times before he turned four months but he couldn't hold himself up very well and would end up with his face in the toys. About two or three weeks ago, we tried again and he started squealing with excitement. Charlton and I love it too, because he can stand, play, chew, and listen to circus songs all by himself! It came in very handy this last week while we were sick. His favorite toy is the red and white striped circus tent you see in most of the pictures. It lights up and spins while it plays music (like "Pop Goes The Weasel and Do Your Ears Hang Low") and has a rubber flag on top he likes to chew on.

Sick Days

If you check our blog regularly (Julie Perry- this is for you), you might have noticed our prayer request box on the right side has been changing every couple of days. I woke up Saturday morning with whatever virus is currently making the rounds. Steven seemed fine for a day or two, but then woke up at 3:30am on Monday just to be sure that we knew he had caught it. Then yesterday, Charlton started feeling not-so-great. I am, thankfully, feeling much better today, and so my recently cleared mind started thinking again...and here's where it wandered...

Moms don't get sick days. Just about any job position you can have, your benefits include sick days, right? Before I was a mom and I got sick, I would divide my day between sleeping in my bed and watching movies on the couch. I still got to do some of that this week but mostly in spurts between feedings and Steven's naps. I was already convinced that being a mom is the hardest job you can have. And this week added new level of meaning for me...there is no one that can fill in for you and I will never be on vacation (not even when I'm sick). Upon my realization about the benefits of this job, a new thought couldn't help but pop into my head...WHY do we do it- normally no one in their right mind would take a job like that? The answer is obvious; I look at my precious baby's face and know...I have the best job in the world.

Here's my beautiful, sick baby on our bed. The "benefits" are actually pretty good, don't you think?

P.S. Happy Birthday to Mamma!

A Mommy's Valentine

Steven and I had some friends from church over today to celebrate Valentine's Day and being moms. I have a new love in my life this year to celebrate! We had brunch and a few valentine goodies.

My inspiration

James

Our neighbors, Ashley and Jackson
Lizzie

Amanda and Daniel

Steven with Jackson

Kim and Lucas

(The After-Party)
In the mirror again

Mommy's Little Valentine

Happy Baby = Happy Mommy

Steven wanted a party favor too!

Checking out Mommy's candy basket

One thing to add....

Steven rolled over for the first time last week- it went along with learning how to push-up. He rolled from his tummy to his back. He's never liked being on his tummy so I think rolling over was just a pratical way of getting off it. No picture since he's only done it once, but my mom (Mamma) was here so I do have a witness that he actually did it! I meant to post this with the last one but forgot. =)

New Tricks

Here are some new things that Steven has been doing in the past week:

He wants to crawl so badly and is tired of being stuck in one place unless Mommy helps him. This push-up was a big break-through. It won't be long now!

Notice that I'm fixing his hair differently- it just started to naturally part this way and so, as usual, I just try to go with the way the hair flows! It's very grown-up looking, with a little extra height in the back courtesy of his cowlick. A friend even commented that he was having a good hair day on the day this picture was taken (pic below).

Now that he is eating cereal, the pediatrician said it would be good if he started drinking a little of water too. He won't take it out of a bottle so we introduced his first sippy cup. As you can tell, he knows just what to do with it; although, there's not as much drinking going on as there is teething. Today was cold and rainy AGAIN. I was desperate to find new things to keep him occupied, and then I saw the mirror! He found a new friend and practiced sitting up. He's doing pretty well- a whole 30 sec. before tipping over. (It's because he saw a picture of Saige sitting up and he wants to do it now too!) He's looking cute in his new pajamas from Mamma.

Starting Solids

Steven has officially been on solid food for a week now. We started with rice cereal as recommended by our pediatrician. It was very watery, so he wasn't that into it (I followed the directions on the box- but quickly learned from other moms that it doesn't need as much liquid as it says- how's a first time mom supposed to figure that out!). He can't quite sit up by himself yet so the highchair was a little hard for him too. He kept falling over so he basically just wanted to chew on the spoon and highchair tray.

That's Ok...this family knows the meaning of determination...or at least stubbornness. We tried again the next day with him sitting in his Bumbo seat on the kitchen table. That worked very well; he loved the cereal after I thickened it a little. He likes to hold the spoon himself and try to shove it in his mouth. Sometimes I'm not sure if he likes the food or chewing on the spoon more. If I take too long between bites though, he leans toward the bowl, reaches his hands over and grunts for more. Today we are going to try oatmeal cereal (such a difference from rice), and we might even try some sweet potatoes tomorrow. We have to wait for Daddy to try the good stuff because he's not convinced that these cereals are "solid foods."

Steven's Room: All about Bugs!

Brrrr....it's cold outside, so we are spending a lot of time indoors. Steven is able to play by himself more now that he can grab and interact with his toys. He spent some time playing in his room this morning. Several of you have asked for pictures of it, so this is for you. The wait is finally over! Exciting, I know.


His room (and the above outfit) are all about bugs. It might seem like a strange choice, but if you know us very well, you know that we are not really into sports all that much. And in case you haven't noticed before, a large portion of baby boy things are sports related. When we were decorating his room, we really wanted something that reflected us but weren't sure how that translated into a baby's room. Charlton collected bugs when he was little and so when we saw this crib bedding set we thought it was the answer. Plus, it was different from everything else we had seen (and we like being different).

Charlton painted the blue and green

stripes, and very patiently stuck each wallpaper bug along the wall. His hard work paid off because those bugs were the first thing that Steven focused on. He first discovered them while laying on the changing table; by 8 weeks he was totally in love with the little guys and "talked" to them like they were old friends. He now talk to us instead of the bugs, but the changing table still remains one his favorite places to hang out. My mom says that she's never seen a baby so happy to be on his changing table!